March 2 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, praised the Iraqi authorities on Thursday for repatriating their nationals from the displacement camps in northeastern Syria and urged other states to follow their example.
“Iraq is not one of the richest countries in the world, but it is receiving returnees from Al Hol. All countries must do the same with their citizens in a dignified repatriation in accordance with International Law,” he said in statements to the press. .
Guterres has also congratulated the Iraqi authorities for their efforts, which are “an example for the world”, since the return is “extremely complex, challenging and delicate”. “I encourage the Government to continue working to speed up community reintegration,” he added.
Regarding the Al Hol camp, he has assured that it is the “worst” that exists in the whole world, since it has “the worst possible conditions”. In this sense, he has explained that almost half of the population there is less than 12 years old.
“Deprived of their rights, vulnerable and marginalized, they are trapped in a desperate situation with no end in sight, they deserve a way out. This is a matter of human decency and compassion and a matter of security,” he concluded.
Various NGOs have been raising alarms for months about the situation in the camp, the scene of murders and attacks in the absence of adequate living conditions, and have called on countries with nationals in both places to speed up repatriations.
The Al Hol camp and the Roj camp house around 10,000 people, many of them wives and children of jihadists. The United Nations considers both camps to be extremely dangerous places due to the presence of Islamic State sleeper cells or undercover sympathizers.
